Winona Ryder is back on set for Beetlejuice 2, and it feels like no time has passed since she first played Lydia Deetz 35 years ago in the 1988 hit Beetlejuice. Winona, in new photos posted by Daily Mail, transformed into the iconic character as she filmed new scenes for the sequel in Hertfordshire, England, on May 18.
The 51-year-old Stranger Things star was rocking Lydia’s signature spiky ‘do, dark eye makeup, and an all-black ensemble as she sat in a car. The years have flown by but Lydia Deetz still looks exactly the same. Then again, Lydia is technically dead.
Winona will be joined by Michael Keaton, who is set to return as the one and only Betelgeuse. Wednesday star Jenna Ortega will play Lydia’s daughter. Warner Bros. confirmed Jenna’s casting at the company’s CinemaCon panel.
Beetlejuice 2 has been in the works for years now. Winona first talked about it back in 2015 during an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers. “Um, I think I can confirm it, because Tim Burton did this interview — like, it was very hush-hush, top secret … and then he was doing some press for Big Eyes and he did an on-camera interview and he said, ‘Oh yeah we’re doing it and Winona’s going to be in it,’ and I was like [shocked face],” she said at the time.
Obviously, Winona has been busy over the last several years playing Joyce Byers in the Netflix juggernaut Stranger Things, which will return for a fifth and final season in the future. After years of being in limbo, Beetlejuice 2 was finally confirmed in 2022. Catherine O’Hara will be reprising her role as Delia Deetz. Justin Theroux, Willem Dafoe, and Monica Bellucci have also joined the cast, with the latter playing Betelgeuse’s wife. Tim Burton will return to direct the film.
Filming began in May 2023 despite the ongoing writers’ strike outside London. Beetlejuice 2 is set to hit theaters on September 6, 2024.